Never Fails
by mbenson
Summary: A collection of Elliot and Olivia songfics in progress.
1. Reset My Heart

**An E/O oneshot and songfic to Reset my Heart by The Outer Vibe.**

**Enjoy my first attempt of a songfic!**

**I don't own the characters or the song, just the content and the ideas in my brain.**

**A/N: **Thank you to those who have read, reviewed, and followed. Your support means more than you know. I'm considering turning this into a collection of different songfics. Yay or nay? Let me know in the reviews please!****

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RESET MY HEART

"El," Olivia murmurs to herself as her partner scurries into the bullpen, twenty-four minutes, and counting, after their captain ordered them to arrive that morning. The distressed look on his face does not go unnoticed to her. Anything out of the ordinary about Elliot is easily picked up by Olivia. And today, everything about his appearance is immensely out of the ordinary. It doesn't even take a partner of seven years to notice that.

He sets his coffee on his desk before his partner and greets her with a smile that doesn't meet his blue eyes-his beautiful blue eyes, she might add-that have dark circles formed underneath them. She gives him a warm smile in return, a smile that doesn't reach her eyes either; all Elliot can see in her eyes is worry. "Later," is all he says, knowing she's going to ask what is wrong with him and why he's so disheveled this morning. She nods in response, understanding now isn't the time because their captain is-

"Benson. Stabler. My office."

Exactly.

"Elliot, twenty-five minutes late? That's not like you," Cragen says, not with anger, but with concern. "Is everything alright?"

Elliot sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. "Well, no, Cap, but I know that's not the reason you called us in here."

"No, it's not, but if there's something wrong with one of my detectives, shouldn't I have the right to know?" Olivia notices that Cragen is nearly as concerned for him as she is.

"Yes, but-"

He's cut off when Olivia places her hand on his shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze while saying, "El, we're just concerned for you. We can tell you're out of sorts today." She smiles reassuringly when he glances her way. His lips twitch upright when he sees the look in her eyes, a look of care and concern.

"I'm struggling with Kathy," he says to her, then looks back at his captain. "We were up all night fighting, and I didn't get much sleep. I overslept, and I'm sorry. Won't happen again." Olivia removes her hand while Elliot straightens up to more of a professional stance.

"I'm sorry to hear about you and your wife. You know, this can wait until tomorrow. I'd tell you to take the day off and go home, but that doesn't seem reasonable given your situation." He's silent for a moment, pondering. "Okay, Olivia, take the day off too and work your charm to cheer Stabler up, got it? That's an order."

Olivia stares at her captain for a moment with a bewildered look on her face, then smirks. "Yes, Captain," she says with an almost playful tone in her voice and leads Elliot out of the office.

"Leaving already? But you just got here!" Munch exclaims.

Elliot shakes his head at his fellow detective's enthusiasm as he and Olivia leave the room. "Bye, Munch!" they call together.

"Raise the price," Munch tells Fin. "It's happening this week," he predicts, nodding in the direction where Elliot and Olivia just left.

"You're on," Fin bets, shaking Munch's hand. "He's going through a rough time with his wife, it ain't gonna happen."

"Ah, and even more of a reason for it to happen." Munch points with his index finger to elaborate his theory. "Experience, remember?"

Fin rolls his eyes, and says with a sarcastic tone, "Right."

* * *

"It's such a nice morning," Olivia admires as she and Elliot stroll through Central Park together. A beautiful spring morning, the sun radiating on their faces, leaves rustling in a light breeze, a variety of birds sharing their tunes with the world.

"It is," Elliot agrees, solemnly, kicking a stone and watching it disappear into the grass.

Olivia pulls her hand out of her pocket and places it on his forearm, rubbing up-and-down softly. "Do you want to talk?"

He looks over at her, his lips slightly curved in a smile because of her caring gesture, but doesn't answer.

"C'mon, talk to me, El," she encourages and leads him over to a park bench and takes a seat with him. "It's just me."

Visions of black and white flood into her mind. The two sitting on the concrete porch steps, discussing their partnership and friendship. How they mean everything to each other. How they are all the other has. _What about me?_ She remembers how her heart fluttered when he said she and the job are all he has left. She felt something she's never felt before, a void filled deep inside, like a rainbow in the night. It was love. She felt loved by the broken man sitting beside her then and now.

Realizing he wasn't planning on saying anything right now, Olivia says, "Well, the window is open wide when you're ready to talk. I'm always here." She rests her hand on top of his folded hands. He unclasps his and pulls hers into a grip between his both.

"I thought love was over," Elliot says, in the same strained tone he spoke with that night.

"It doesn't have to be over with Kathy, El. It can be fixed," Olivia says, attempting to soothe him.

"No, Liv. It's over with her, long over. It has been. I was already planning on moving out this weekend." Rather than continuing to focus on the uninteresting pavement, he turns and gives Olivia his undivided attention, his blue eyes staring deeply into her chocolate browns. "I meant... God, I don't know what I meant. What I had with Kathy, it was never real love. I figured what I had with her was love because I knew nothing else. I never knew what love was. So when I realized my marriage was over, a long time ago, I thought love was over... That is until," he trails off, sighing. He takes one hand away from his grip on Olivia's and uses it to rub the back of his neck.

Olivia squeezes the hand still holding onto hers. "Until what, El?"

He relaxes, feeling her tightly gripping his hand. He takes his free hand and takes a hold of her other hand, to her surprise. "Well, Liv, until I met you and you reset my heart." The smile he now wears, meet his lively blue eyes.

She blinks, astonished at his statement. "Me?" is all she chokes out.

"You. Because of you, you gave me a brand new start."

The feeling returns deep inside Olivia. The rainbow in the night, the void being filled deep inside, the key that sets her free. She feels loved.

"What are you thinking?" he asks her, nervous that his confession has scared her and that she'll run away from him again.

"I'm thinking...that," she gulps, afraid to admit her feelings to the only man she's ever loved and ever will love, the man that reset _her_ heart. "That I…I love you, El." Elliot's face brightens. She's never seen such a radiant smile light up his face before. And his blue eyes, his beautiful blue eyes, are twinkling, gleaming, glistening. "May I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"Why were you so down today, I mean, if you weren't upset about Kathy?"

He chuckles. "I'm really fricken tired. And I've been contemplating all morning on how to finally tell you how I feel." His thumb strokes the back of her hand.

"Well, you did just fine," she tells him, watching his smiler somehow grow wider. "And I ask of you one more thing, El."

"Anything, Liv," he murmurs.

"Kiss me."

So he does.

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**Please review and let me know if I should add more songfics!**


	2. Already Home

**A Great Big World owns the lyrics to Already Home. Dick Wolf owns SVU, the characters, and some of the dialoge. I own my ideas and stories. Enjoy the second addition of Music Speaks!**

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ALREADY HOME

"Liv," Cragen calls, barely audible, as he steps out of his office. The tone of his voice startles Olivia because it is too calm to mean anything positive. It means something is wrong. Very wrong.

"Nice working with ya," Munch snorts, and Olivia clenches her jaw at him for being, well, the typical Munch he always is. As she stands from her chair, she sees how all the action among her colleagues has come to a stop. She feels like a bug under a microscope with all eyes on her. The looks on their faces...concern? Curiosity? Do they already know? Is she actually getting fired? She can't be fired, she can't lose her job, and she certainly can't lose her partnership with Elliot, who isn't even present…Does he know?

Something is very, very wrong.

Olivia follows her captain into his office and begins defending herself and her position, "I don't think she lied about being raped."

Cragen disregards her comment, barely allowing her to finish her statement when he asks, "Will you shut the door please?"

She does as he asks, a skeptical look on her face, her infamous eyebrow shot up. She stares, waiting for him to spill.

He sighs, and gives Olivia a look of sympathy. His eyes are saddened when he informs her, "Elliot put his papers in."

Her eyes go blank as the information sinks into to her brain which has gone dead. She drops her jaw to question him, but nothing but air comes out. Elliot, what? He's gone? Her body goes numb. She can't speak. She can't see straight.

"There was nothing I could do," he murmurs solemnly.

Although the tightness in her lungs is unbearable, she squeaks out, "He's earned it."

"And then some," Cragen adds with a nod.

Her stomach beats out of time, and her heart is nauseous. No, no, her heart beats out of time, and her stomach is nauseous. Sobs are clawing at her, begging to come out. The dam is loading itself behind her eyes, preparing to break.

Cragen, seeing the heartbroken look on Olivia's face, asks, "Do you wanna talk?"

She shakes her head and mumbles, "No." Actually, she just doesn't want to break down in front of her captain. Be strong, be strong, she coaxes herself. She looks away, not allowing him to see her weakness.

Although he already knows the answer asks, "Do you wanna take a day?"

Yes. She wants to go home and cry for the rest of the day and week and month and year. She wants to scream. She wants to go on a rampage and break every damn thing in the damn room. She wants to find Elliot and sob uncontrollably in his arms, but he left her. She can't find him. He's gone. She wants to run out and kill all the damn perps that's ever harmed anyone. God, she's not thinking straight. She wants to go home and drink away her misery. With Elliot. She wants Elliot. But she can't have him. And she can't go home, or she'll end up doing something destructive to herself or someone else. She needs to work to clear her mind. So she tells the biggest lie. Two simple words she knows will never be true for a long, long time. If ever. Be strong, Benson. She looks back at her worried captain and chokes out, "I'm fine."

"Liv," Cragen hesitates and sighs, "I'm sorry."

She nods, saying nothing more. She isn't capable of saying anything else. The dam. It's going to overflow. Stay strong. She leaves the room.

The eyes. They're on her again. "You okay?" Fin asks.

NO! "Yeah," she mumbles. There's that lie again.

The commotion is almost too much for her to handle. She doesn't have a partner. She doesn't have Elliot.

Munch is on the phone, and she is hardly able to process what he's saying. "Be right there." The slam of the phone makes her flinch. "We got a 1034 on Waverly," he informs them. Seeing Olivia not budging, orders, "Fin take Rollins."

Olivia breaks out of her trance, "No I'll go. Give me five, and we'll roll." There's the fake smile. She looks at everyone, attempting to convince them that she's okay, or at least stable. Stable. Stabler. Dammit. She's not okay. She isn't going to be okay. She leaves the room and finds a secluded hallway. The tightness. The dam. She's going to break.

She finds an empty interrogation room and takes ahold of the handle, but pauses before she opens it, hearing a familiar voice call, "Liv!"

She whips her head around. "El!" she cries and runs to him. His arms are open for her as he scurries ahead to meet her. She crashes her body into him, melting into his arms. "El," she whimpers. The dam breaks.

Elliot feels her body quiver as the sobs overtake her. He strokes her hair and squeezes tighter. "It's okay, Liv. I'm here. I'm here," he soothes.

She sucks in a shaky breath and squeezes her eyes closed to allow the final tears to spill over. She lifts her head off from his chest and wipes her eyes, then peers into his. "What are... You... Why are you," she bites her lip. "You're here." She smiles for the first time today and places her hands on his cheeks. "I thought you were long gone."

He pulls her head back to his chest and kisses the top of her head, much to Olivia's surprise, but she's too overwhelmed with emotions to bother asking why he kissed her. "Did you really think I could leave without telling you goodbye?" One arm trails down to her waist, locking her in place.

She sniffles and lets out a relieved laugh, "I did, actually." She inhales his scent, then lifts her head to look at him and wrap her arms around his neck.

He smiles warmly, the skin crinkling around his bright blue eyes. "C'mon, Liv, you know me better than that."

Then it sinks in. Goodbye. "Why are you leaving, Elliot?" She hates to ask. She hates that he's leaving. It makes her cringe. "Will I ever see you again?" she whispers.

"Oh, Liv, of course you'll see me again! Do you have to be somewhere, or can I explain it to you?" he asks, loosening his grip around Olivia to her dismay.

Her face falls. "After work?"

"I- I have a plane to catch this evening." He scrunches his face up knowing Olivia isn't going to like that.

She pulls away and stares at him, eyebrow raised, blank expression. "What." It's not a question for she says it with a demanding tone.

"I told you I have to explain." He scratches the back of his head.

"Meet me outside. I'll be there in a few." They part separate ways while Olivia finds Cragen to agree upon his earlier offer of taking the day off.

* * *

"Thanks," Olivia says to Elliot as he hands her a cup of coffee, joining her on the loveseat in Starbucks. She sips her coffee and chuckles to herself. "At least you never have to deal with Munch's coffee ever again." Her lips quiver as she fights to keep the smile plastered on her face.

"Don't worry, Liv. I'll come back." His left hand squeezed her right knee to help reassure her, but only made her sadder. She's going to lose Elliot before she really had him. He'll probably meet someone when he's away and forget about her anyway.

"How long will you be gone?" she dares to ask, straightening up in preparation for his answer.

"I can't say. Weeks, months. God, I told my mother not to move to Alabama by herself. She's in bad shape and needs me there. Who knows if she'll recover from this or not." He wipes his palm across his forehead, feeling helpless.

"I'm sorry, Elliot," Olivia whispers, then looks down to her coffee. "What about your kids?"

He shakes his head, not wanting to believe what he's about to say, "They'll be staying with Kathy all this time. Depends on how long I'll be down there if they will visit me or not. So, I don't know how long it will be until I see them." He checks his watch. "I have to say goodbye to them before I leave today."

Olivia hesitates before asking, "Do you mind if I come with? I can bring you to the airport afterwards if you'd like."

His face brightens, a smile replacing the look of remorse. "I'd love that."

Olivia's face is a replica of Elliot's bliss. "You would?"

He sets his coffee down on the table in front of them and turns to face her. "Of course I would, Liv." He grabs the coffee out of her hands and puts it next to his while saying, "I know this is off-topic and probably the worst timing ever, but there's something I've been meaning to tell you for a very long time, but just haven't been able to find the words." He grabs a hold of both of Olivia's hands, continuing his nervous rambling, "And you're probably going to think I'm ridiculous or be glad that I'm leaving after I say this, but I'm just going to-"

He's stopped by Olivia's index finger to his lips. "Just say it," she whispers.

He smiles and removes her hand. "Okay," he sighs. His eyes drop to their intertwined hands. Olivia watches his lips, until his eyes peer back into hers and she returns the icy gaze with her shy browns. His smile softens as he becomes lost in her eyes, trying to read her expression. He momentarily forgets what he was going to tell her while she is unintentionally memorizing him.

"El?" she questions, interrupting his trance.

His lips twitch upward again as he gathers his thoughts. "Sorry...it's just...You're beautiful, you know that?"

He loses her eyes as they fall down to stare at their hands. He sees her lightly shake her head, telling him that she doesn't know that and doesn't believe him. She regains composure and meets his eyes again. "What do you have to tell me, El?"

"Don't be afraid, Liv," he murmurs.

She furrows her brows in response, then asks, "Why would I be-"

"I love you, Olivia," he admits, then adds, "I'm _in love_ with you."

Her eyes brighten at his words. It seems like she's been waiting her entire life to hear those words come out of his mouth. But the joy quickly fades as reality hits her. "But you're leaving," she chokes out, her voice higher as she holds back tears.

"Not forever," he assures.

"Elliot, this is ridiculous! You can't just tell me you're leaving, then tell me you're...in love with me. How am I supposed to deal with knowing the man I have been in love with for years is leaving for God knows how long just after he admitted he loves me? How?" She bites her lip in realization of what she said.

"I promise you, I'm coming back, Liv...Wait, you love me?" She sees his blue eyes glisten as her words sink in.

"Of course, I love you. Of course, I do. I have for so long. I never expected to ever admit it though, especially like this." She sighs, looking at their hands still clasped together. "But love is what you put into it, Elliot, and you can't put anything into it when you're not with me." She meets his eyes with a saddened expression.

"Don't worry." His thumb strokes her cheek to wipe away a fallen tear. "_When you're scared and alone, just know that I'm already home."_

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**Part two, anyone? Let me know!**


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